Section 69December 22, 1997, Sec./Art. 69

Network of National Centers of Excellence for Territory Education. - There is hereby established a Network of National Centers of Excellence in Agriculture and Fisheries Education, composed of qualified public and private colleges and universities, duly accredited as National Centers of Excellence (NCE) in the field of agriculture and fisheries.

For this purpose, the CHED shall formulate and implement a system of accreditation Provided, That not more than one provincial institute in every province and no more than one national university in each field in every region shall be accredited as such and Provided, further, That the system shall be based on the following criteria:

a. institutional accessibility, population, economic contribution of agriculture and fisheries in the community, and the needs or unique requirements of the area

b. quantity and quality of research studies conducted;

c. degree of utilization of research results;

d. quantity and quality of faculty members;

e. type of facilities;

f. linkage with international organizations; and

g. potential contribution to agriculture and fisheries development in the target area.